COVID-19 clusters identified at supportive housing facilities in Victoria
We knew COVID-19 had started to spread among unhoused people in Victoria, but we didn't know exactly how many people were affected until now.
Internal documents from Island Health show 225 cases of COVID-19 were identified in supportive housing facilities between Sept. 1 to Sept. 22.
The documents were leaked to the Capital Daily, which shared them with CTV News.
"Our stance on privacy has always been (that) we respect the privacy of the people we serve," said Dr. Richard Stanwick, Island Health Chief Medical Health Officer.
That's why Island Health says it did not make the data public.
(Capital Daily)
The documents show case counts across 22 supportive housing facilities in the Victoria area.
As of Tuesday, 148 cases were active, including cases among 20 people without a fixed address.
Despite these numbers, Island Health has not declared any COVID-19 outbreaks at a housing facility, only clusters.
"We don't declare (an outbreak) in an apartment building where there's a family that has COVID, and this is very similar," said Dr. Dee Hoyano, Greater Victoria Medical Health Officer.
That's what Hoyano says is the difference between declaring an outbreak at a licenced care home and a supportive housing facility.
Some of the Cool Aid Society's homes are listed as cluster locations.
"We were expecting it a lot sooner and thought maybe it had passed us by," said Kathy Stinson, CEO of the Cool Aid Society.
The head of the society says staff are well aware of what's happening on the ground and how to handle it.
"We need to act as if it's in our buildings, whether we have an active case or not," said Stinson.
Island Health says there's a major push from front-line workers to get people vaccinated.
"Literally every day of the week they are knocking on doors offering vaccine," said Hoyano.
But it's an effort that Island Health says is difficult to undertake in a community that may have lost trust in the system.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
From outer space? Sask. farmers baffled after discovering strange wreckage in field
A family of fifth generation farmers from Ituna, Sask. are trying to find answers after discovering several strange objects lying on their land.
NEW Iconic Canadian song turns 50
Andy Kim's 'Rock Me Gently' is marking a major milestone, as it celebrates its 50th anniversary.
Oprah Winfrey: I set an unrealistic standard for dieting
Oprah Winfrey said on Thursday evening that she has long played a role in promoting unhealthy and unrealistic diets.
Prince Harry, Meghan arrive in Nigeria to champion the Invictus Games and meet with wounded soldiers
Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan, arrived in Nigeria on Friday to champion the Invictus Games, which he founded to aid the rehabilitation of wounded and sick servicemembers and veterans, among them Nigerian soldiers fighting a 14-year war against Islamic extremists.
Countries struggle to draft 'pandemic treaty' to avoid mistakes made during COVID
After the coronavirus pandemic triggered once-unthinkable lockdowns, upended economies and killed millions, leaders at the World Health Organization and worldwide vowed to do better in the future. Years later, countries are still struggling to come up with an agreed-upon plan for how the world might respond to the next global outbreak.
Toronto police called to Drake's Bridle Path mansion for another alleged intruder on Thursday
Toronto police say a man who allegedly attempted to access Drake’s Bridle Path property was taken to hospital on Thursday after an altercation with security guards.
Ontario family receives massive hospital bill as part of LTC law, refuses to pay
A southwestern Ontario woman has received an $8,400 bill from a hospital in Windsor, Ont., after she refused to put her mother in a nursing home she hated -- and she says she has no intention of paying it.
Flat tire on a highway? Here's why you shouldn't try to fix it
If you're cruising down a highway and realize you have a flat tire, you may want to think twice before stopping to fix it on the side of the road.
Broadcaster and commentator Rex Murphy dead at 77: National Post
The National Post is reporting that Rex Murphy, the pundit and columnist who hosted a national call-in radio show for decades, has died.